Is match fishing like riding a bike....

[Dave]

Is match fishing like riding a bike...... once you learn you never forget?

Or is it a case of all fingers and thumbs and getting battered from either side

If you've fished a match this weekend tell us all about it, how you fared, and the more photos the better

 

[gingert76]

fishing one tomorrow but its def not like riding a bike IMHO, the basics are like settign up, layout etc but always things to learn and adapt and usually i hiding from the next peg is on the cards lol

 

[Arry]

No... its constantly evolving... in my match heydays (96-2000) the emphasis wasn't on commercials as such, pellet fishing just wasn't in the frame as it is now... I had difficulty adjusting to commercial waters, but managed to hold my own... now I just can't be bothered to keep up, so I do my own thing nowadays... I never got the hang of fishing long pole, so didn't bother... even the monthly clubbies on local commies held no appeal any more so I stopped fishing those a year or so ago

 

[gingert76]

one thing i love is long pole fishing over 13meters, but most of the time its 2 plus 2 these days!

 

[adriang]

I returned to (regular) coarse fishing and found that I needed to get back into the groove with things like casting accuracy, getting into a decent rhythm and also dexterity with putting on smaller shot (might also be an age thing).

I also had to remind myself of a few things around watercraft and basics, such as plumbing the whole swim not just the bit in front of me where I'd like to fish because it's convenient.

As Arry mentions above, a lot of things evolved, commercials I view as a different type of fishing, the use of pellets, hair rigging 'traditional baits', there seems to be a general leaning towards heavier lines, bigger hooks..

 

[Dave]

News just in, plenty on the banks this morning....

 

[ukzero1]

News just in, plenty on the banks this morning....

View attachment 34290

Reminds me of the Trent in the mid/late 80's.

 

[Arry]

The other thing that has changed is the need for a barrow literally piled high with kit to fish a five hour match... by the time I'd got me barrow unloaded, box set up, bait mixed, rods out and set up, pole out, top kits and roost set, rigs attached and plumbed up, bait waiter loaded up flask and sarnies out it was time to go home... now I take one or two rods and I'm fishing 10 minutes

 

[Scribe]

If match fishing is like riding a bike, I have still not managed to take the stabilisers off.

 

[davej1981]

The other thing that has changed is the need for a barrow literally piled high with kit to fish a five hour match... by the time I'd got me barrow unloaded, box set up, bait mixed, rods out and set up, pole out, top kits and roost set, rigs attached and plumbed up, bait waiter loaded up flask and sarnies out it was time to go home... now I take one or two rods and I'm fishing 10 minutes

Ive noticed that too i think back to the rivers i used to fish and think how on earth would you you ever get all that gear to your peg with walks across fields, styles to climb and narrow gates to get through

 

[dry nets]

I wouldn’t say so. I’m good at riding a bike?

 

[Neil ofthe nene]

I expect to drop back into the routine. Decoy Oak tomorrow. Already decided that it will be topkit + 2 max all day. Hopefully draw a good margin swim. If not bottom of the near shelf.

 

[pies]

I dont think so. I stopped for a year and just returned, im finding ive lost “contact” With how the fish are likely to behave in different conditions. Give it a few weeks and i think i will be back where i was. Still rubbish though but not as shitr ?

 

[Carp attack]

Fished match on Thursday, got drawn in a corner which is feast or famine, caught slapping on 2 lines 1 next some reeds an another near some lillies, can normally catch short on hard pellets but they would not settle at all until last 40 mins, crafty buggers! In end had 118lb of carp, most 2lb, biggest 4lb, middle pegs dominated, 149lb winning, think I was 5th, not million miles away but a slow start cost me some fish, nice to have the match feel again an roll on next week! ??

 

[gingert76]

well i have drawn the second worse peg on the lake for tomorrow (11)! thats the excuse in the book sorted!

only good thing is peg 13 is the worse but has a local on it so will prob get stuffed lol, the bloke running the match just told me last week on peg 10 he had 180 fish for estimated 600lb so cant be that bad lol

 

[Dave]

I wonder if we'll see anglers not turning up to matches once they know what they've drawn, especially if they know the venue well?

Or as it used to happen many years ago where an angler would pay on and draw a bad peg, then drive off to the next stretch and do the same again, edging his bets?

 

[Zerkalo]

I’d keep it simple if I started entering opens again after a long break and just building my tackle back up again by entering matches at a place that’s been named online on another forum as the ‘Worst Fishery’. It’s not that bad but unlikely to attract the same calibre of anglers as Feeder Masters type matches on venues I prefer to fish but I want a new pole first, some would say I’m not a good enough angler to warrant shiny new tackle let alone fishing matches though.

 

[davylad]

I went fishing yesterday, and although it wasn't a match I always fish as though it is. There was only my brother in law and myself on the whole lake, so thought we'd empty it. The fish were spawning so left them alone and fished quite long, and to say I was having a mare is an understatement. It took me the best part of an hour before I got a bait in the water, you name it, everything that went wrong did. I dropped rigs under the peg grating, couldn't find the rigs I wanted etc etc. When I did eventually get fishing, I lost fish after fish, breaking on three lumps before I realised I'd put the wrong hook lengths on. I let fish get under my keepnet as I was about to land them, this continued for the best part of three hours, until I sorted myself out. If it is like riding a bike, I would have been in ward 6 after an hour or two, mind you we did end up with a couple of full keepnets by the time we'd finished.

 

[Total]

......some would say I’m not a good enough angler to warrant shiny new tackle let alone fishing matches though.

(Despite you're 'stick out tongue' Smiley above).....Jeez, are you still worried what some people think regarding your new tackle purchases and match prowess? ......Get out there and enjoy for Christ sake....

 

[Zerkalo]

(Despite you're 'stick out tongue' Smiley above).....Jeez, are you still worried what some people think regarding your new tackle purchases and match prowess? ......Get out there and enjoy for Christ sake....

I'm only playing but it is a bit of a confidence issue I think. The tackle talk is just tackle banter.